The recommendations will be reviewed by an independent commission over the next year before any actions are taken. Lawmakers hope to finalize the spending plan within the next week. A system issue forced the health records offline for a day last week, disrupting medical operations at a Washington state site. The move follows comments from the president in his State of the Union address asking Congress to do more to help those veterans. Advocates say new eligibility requirements will exclude veterans in need of full-time care. Department officials expect to be monitoring virus cases indefinitely, but are hopeful it will eventually become more of a nuisance than public health threat. The president will also discuss financial help and mental health resources for veterans during his address to Congress. The court is expected to hear oral arguments on the issue later this year. As college campuses return to normal operations, department officials are planning to let GI Bill protections expire in June. Thousands of families are could lose monthly stipends amid an overhaul of the program that started last fall. Load More